


My Omega Roommate, Jihoon

by FlyingSeaLion



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alpha Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Falling In Love, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, He doesn't mind at all, Humor, Internal Conflict, Jihoon sleeps in Soonyoung's bed during his heat, Light Angst, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Minor Original Character(s), Omega Lee Jihoon | Woozi, Omega Verse, Roommates, Scenting, Slow Burn, Soonyoung sleeps on the couch, Speed Dating, Teasing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:34:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29520240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlyingSeaLion/pseuds/FlyingSeaLion
Summary: Jihoon and Soonyoung are roommates, and they help each other through heats and ruts. No big deal, they're just friends. When they try dating other people though, it's their relationship that grows the most.
Relationships: Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi/Lee Jihoon | Woozi
Comments: 39
Kudos: 92





	1. Tea

"Soonyoung... Soonyoung..."

The call was distant, from behind a closed door, but Soonyoung roused quickly from his slumber.

"Soonyoung..." A whimper followed his name, and his heart ached at the pain in the voice.

Soonyoung threw his thin blanket off as he leapt from the couch, plodded towards his room and rubbed his eyes to feel more awake. He knocked at the door and opened it slowly, and only entered when he heard Jihoon say his name again.

He inhaled deeply to gauge how his friend was doing. He couldn't detect any trace of the sweet rose water accent to Jihoon's scent in the room, only the bland milk chocolate aroma filled the space; it was muted and slightly bitter, reflecting Jihoon's discomfort.

Soonyoung padded over to sit on his chair, wheeling it closer to the bed. Jihoon's eyes flashed open as the chair creaked, and his dilated pupils shrunk back to normal, his breathing calming at Soonyoung's presence.

Soonyoung began purposefully scenting the room with hints of pine needles, more pungent than Jihoon's chocolate, transforming the air in the room from stifling to fresh.

"Thanks," Jihoon said, noticing the shift in the air immediately, before a whine escaped, and he grimaced clutching his blanket tightly for a moment. Soonyoung set a hand on the blanket close by, and Jihoon reached over to hold it loosely, his fingers curling around Soonyoung's.

"The cramps just started ?" Soonyoung asked, patting and rubbing the top of Jihoon's hand with his thumb.

Jihoon nodded, a miserable pout and downcast look on his face. His scent spiked for a second, there was no discernable flavour to it, just something that denoted pain, Soonyoung winced. He ran through ideas in his head, wondering how he could help.

Soonyoung slid his hand out of Jihoon's carefully, the omega widened his eyes and turned his head in question.

"I'll be three minutes. Just going to the kitchen, okay. Hot chocolate or coffee ?"

Soonyoung took off his jumper while Jihoon decided, and handed it to him, so his scent would remain in the room while he was gone. He hated leaving Jihoon when he'd called for him, but it was necessary sometimes. Leaving something freshly smelling of him made these short absences more comfortable for Jihoon.

"Tea. Please," Jihoon said, his eyebrows falling in anticipation of Soonyoung leaving the room. The feeling of walking away during Jihoon's heats always left Soonyoung short of breath and his muscles spasmed sharply; his body giving a clear message that something was wrong. Then there was the after shock, mentally, of knowing Jihoon had felt it too.

They've joked before about their alpha and omega reactions being ridiculously intense, despite not being mated or anything other than friends. Not spending as much time together would probably let the sensation fade, but they were content to deal with it for the time being.

Jihoon has confided in him, that he worries how severe the reaction would be if he was ever mated to someone. Soonyoung doesn't like to think about that, he doesn't ever want Jihoon to be hurt; the occasional time he needs to leave Jihoon make him feel hugely worried and guilty.

Soonyoung left the room, the shock of leaving zipped through his core, contracting his muscles, making him bend and grit his teeth. That wave of shock must pale in comparison to what Jihoon was going through with the heat, so he hurried on to the kitchen.

In his determined haste, he doesn't hear the quiet, "Soonyoung..." trying to call him back; the sound dampened by the door pulled almost shut to keep the warmth in.

Soonyoung was at the counter, sloshing water around the sink as he filled the kettle, placed it on its base, and clicked the button to boil the water. He pulled out Jihoon's cup and the tea leaves and herbs; he was still no expert at preparing this stuff, but he'd had enough practice to make it palatable, having roomed with Jihoon for over a year now.

Jihoon had refused to change rooms the two times the other members happily shuffled themselves around the dorms; Soonyoung couldn't stop laughing the first time it happened; with Jihoon, his small frame blocking the door to their two bedroom apartment, growling at Jun and Joshua to fuck off somewhere else, cause he thought the whole moving around thing was stupid. They both laughed at his seriousness and Soonyoung had to poke his head out the door where Jihoon was still planted, and called out an apology on his behalf.

Jihoon clearly couldn't deal with change, and his anger at situations like that was hilarious to Soonyoung. He was happy too though, Jihoon was his favourite roommate so far, despite the numerous rotations in living quarters he'd gone through. Jihoon hadn't said anything either way about Soonyoung changing rooms, but he could tell from his silence about the topic that he'd rather if he stayed too.

He pulled out Jihoon's favourite chocolate bar, weirdly enough it was the flavour that matched his scent, and he pulled just three squares from the packet; too much sugar in the middle of his heats made Jihoon feel sick, but having a little was important and improved his mood.

Soonyoung stuck one of the squares in his mouth, humming at the taste that Jihoon had somehow got him to appreciate, after trying it so many times.

He crouched down and swung open a cupboard, sticking his hand in to pull out a hot water bottle, clothed by a tiger character; it was his of course, but Jihoon used it more often than he did.

He unscrewed the cork from the top and poured boiling water until it was half full, squeezing it to get the air out as he tightened the cork in again. He turned it upside down and shook it over the sink to make sure it was safe to use, and tucked it under his arm to carry. He grabbed the cup and chocolate and made his way back to his room.

He pushed open the door with his shoulder, and Jihoon's scent was less intense than earlier. He was sitting up in the bed, Soonyoung's jumper pulled over him, the sleeves falling over his shoulders as if it were giving him a hug. His face brightened as Soonyoung appeared, but his voice had a snarky time when he said, "Took you 4 minutes 10 seconds," he showed the timer open on his phone, "I thought you'd died or something."

Soonyoung laughed, his tongue playing with the chocolate in his mouth, and he wondered what had made Jihoon calm down enough to joke like that. It was a relief.

He would've rolled his eyes at the joke too, but he was distracted by a wave of calm eminating from his heart as he returned. It was as if he'd taken a deep yawn, the breath traveling in comforting waves as far as his toes, and his mind felt more alert afterwards.

Leaving Jihoon at these times was uncomfortable, but sometimes the effects of returning made the trips feel worth it.

Soonyoung set the cup and chocolate on Jihoon's bedside table, and lifted the hot water bottle to Jihoon's hands.

"Oh, thank you. I always forget to use that," he said, holding it between his palms for a second to sense the temperature before lifting the bottom of his shirt to tuck the tiger against his stomach.

The brief shifting of blanket and cloth let a sweet sugary aroma whaft between them, it was faint and quickly covered by Jihoon's natural scent, but it still piqued Soonyoung's interest. It must've been some kind of pheromone Jihoon couldn't control, so he decided not to mention it.

Jihoon's lips twitched into a smile when the tiger shared it's firey heat, a stronger twist of rose water gave life to his constant smell of chocolate; a touch of sweetness had returned, meaning Soonyoung's managed to make him feel better.

Soonyoung relaxed when he saw the smile. He sat again and lifted the cup by its rim, with the handle pointing to Jihoon, and he gave a whisper of, "Hey."

Jihoon looked over and accepted the cup with a thanks, blowing on the tea and dipping a finger in to see if it's cooled enough to drink. Which of course it has since Soonyoung checked before bringing it in. He took a generous gulp, a droplet of the pink liquid rolled down to his chin tickling him. He held the cup in one hand and wiped the drop onto the back of his hand.

Soonyoung hadn't seen him smile this brightly in at least a week, his heat having only started two nights ago. He's really grateful he gets to lift Jihoon's mood this way, nothing makes him feel better than moments like these, Jihoon's eyes thanking him and his scent turning sweet again.

Soonyoung smiles back, feeling as though he's been rejuvenated too.

Soonyoung picked up the chocolate and broke the squares apart, and offered one to Jihoon.

Instead of taking it with his free hand, Jihoon leaned across the bed onto his elbow and gobbled it from Soonyoung's fingers and they both laughed, "Watch those teeth, Jihoonie !" Soonyoung scolded, pulling his hand back and putting on a terrified expression.

"Pfft, says the guy with literal fangs," Jihoon said, he bopped his head slightly as the chocolate melted in his mouth, and washed it down with some tea.

Soonyoung put on a wide smile, and pulled the corner of his mouth back to show part of his upper gum where one of his fangs was, "Aren't they cool ?"

"They're great. Fingers crossed you'll find an omega soon to use them on," Jihoon said, sticking out his tongue.

"Gross, leave me alone ! I'm way too busy to try looking for a relationship anyway."

"You're less busy than me, and even I make time for that," Jihoon laughed, "I'm telling Seungcheol so he'll set you up with someone."

"Not this again," Soonyoung slumped forward in the chair, resting his head on the bed, "If you do that I'll make him set the whole group up with dates, including you, and I'll tell them it's all your fault !"

"What're they gonna do ? Cry to me about it ? They're all fucking terrified of me Soonyoung, your plan is a total flop !" They both laugh out loud at his failed idea.

"Whatever I'll find some way to get my revenge, you better watch your back Jihoon," he feigns a threat, and looks up to see Jihoon with his lips pursed, his unfazed attitude apparent. He slurps down the rest of the tea and settles the cup carefully on Soonyoung's head.

It wobbled a bit, "Don't break my favourite cup, idiot," Jihoon smiled down at him, letting go of the handle and laughing at Soonyoung's shaky, frozen position.

He reaches a hand up slowly to hold it and brings it down to rock it in his arms, "I would never do such a thing. You better take care of my tiger in return."

"Huh ?" Jihoon said, confused.

Soonyoung reaches out to poke the hot water bottle covering his stomach, pressing into the softness, and squawks when Jihoon bats his hand away.

"Quit it !"

Something about the image makes his heart burn with happiness, and he wants to purr. He can't explain the strong emotion he feels, and he zips his lips shut to stop the noise from coming out but he tries to shrug it off as just having a fun time.

"I'll let you get some rest," Soonyoung said, and Jihoon scooted down the bed to lie again.

"Thanks for coming in, when I called," Jihoon said, his ears turning a little pink in embarassment, now that the pain had eased and he was feeling more himself again.

"Anytime," Soonyoung teased, looking into the empty cup in his hand, at the scattered pile of ingredients. He didn't want to embarrass Jihoon more by staring at him, even if he's cutest when acting shy.

"Shh," Jihoon said, and he pulled his blanket up to cover his red face. His scent dwindled until Soonyoung could barely sense it anymore, so without thinking he reached for the blanket between Jihoon's two hands and pulled it down to see his face again.

"Night, Soonyoung," Jihoon said, scowling at his big smile. He tries to pull the blanket up again after saying it but Soonyoung won't let him. His scent is sparkling with rose water, and it's making Soonyoung want to laugh out with happiness.

"Night, Jihoon," he replied soothingly, letting go of the blanket, hand brushing over Jihoon's before he went to the door and paused - making sure to fill the far side of the room with his calm scent for Jihoon to have in a few minutes after he's gone.

Soonyoung looked back to smile at him again, to see him once more before he left. Jihoon peaked out from his nest and blankets with a small smile, the happy rose water scent following Soonyoung all the way to the door.

The shock went through him again as he closed the door behind him, though it was significantly less sharp than it was earlier. He tried to breath again slowly as he walked away.

He goes back to the kitchen to clear away the mess he made, and plucks two water bottles from the fridge as he leaves. He put one at Jihoon's door, since he still had a full one inside, and took the other with him to the couch.

His room would be occupied for another day or so, and despite Jihoon insisting he didn't need to stay in Soonyoung's room, or saying Soonyoung could stay in his in the meantime, he always insisted that this was just fine.

Jihoon had a much easier time with heats when an alphas scent was all around him. He never cried of pain or frustration when he was there, unlike the few times Soonyoung had overheard him in his own room. His heart broke at the noise but Jihoon didn't want to see him or anyone else during those times.

The duration of his heat was also cut by almost an entire day, significant when he had work to do for tight deadlines and scheduled things to attend.

And overall Jihoon was happier, having the scent of an alpha laced in the pillow and sheets he nested in. Soonyoung was glad that Jihoon was somewhere he felt safe when he was so vulnerable.

And as for taking Jihoon's room, he wanted Jihoon to have his own space with only his scent if needed, just out of consideration. Jihoon told him he was being dramatic, but he didn't push Soonyoung to do anything either way, he respected his decision.

Despite their talks about finding mates in the future being mostly about complaining about the hassle, he did hope Jihoon would find someone he liked, and wanted to be with, sooner rather than later, so he wouldn't have to suffer through this every few weeks.

Soonyoung settled on the couch, which they'd upgraded a few months into rooming together, when they realised Jihoon taking his bed would happen quite often; so it was incredibly comfortable.

He felt his back un-tense as it got to stretch out flat, and felt himself sink into the material slowly, a smile tugged at his lips; his alpha side was satisfied after taking care of his friend, the rose water scent was still lingering on him for a while, and it calmed him a lot.

He had an early start in the morning, a lot scheduled, and of course he'd come to check on Jihoon once or twice during the day to make sure he's eaten and had enough to drink. He liked being busy, even if what he was most looking forward to tomorrow was seeing Jihoon during his breaks.

He eased into sleep, the rose water fragrance following him, conjuring up dreams of vibrant, flower meadows where he danced and relaxed; pink cloudless skies blanketed this world, and the beautiful flower patches were nestled in a forest of pine. Soonyoung was delirious with delight at being here, in a place that intensified his scent, and mixed it with something delicious.


	2. Anime

Soonyoung wakes with a warmth at his feet, and Jihoon's sweet scent flutters to his nose.

"Morning," Jihoon says when he hears Soonyoung groan. His voice was still a pitch higher than usual from the heat, and the gravelly quality from sleep makes Soonyoung smile.

"What're you doing out of bed ?" Soonyoung asks, rolling from his back to his side and looking at Jihoon sitting at the end of the couch. He was after stealing Soonyoung's blanket and it was pulled over his shoulders.

"I mi- Umm, I was hungry," he stutters, and takes a sip from the bowl of soup that's warming his hand.

"Oh, I'm so tired. I don't wanna go to work today," Soonyoung whines, slumping off the couch and kneeling at Jihoon's feet, resting his head on the end of the blanket beside his leg. Jihoon prods him with his foot.

"You love your work, and you say this every morning," Jihoon states matter of factly, "Get dressed."

Soonyoung looks up at Jihoon's face, his scent is strong from basking in it all night, and being so close to the source is like a sedative for the alpha. He can feel a wisp of his dreams curl at his mind, tempting him to sleep again.

"Okay," Soonyoung says, easily pushing the laziness away, and he slaps his palms on the floor to push himself up. He goes over to his room, and despite the distance from Jihoon, there's no physical reaction since his scent is lingering in this room too.

Soonyoung wants to jokingly weep that he can't sleep here right now since he has to work; he would be snoring four seconds after his head hit the pillow with the calm omega phermones and warm bed sheets.

He pulls on a loose yellow t-shirt and grey sweatpants, and white thick-soled sneakers, He gets ready in the bathroom too, a small shock hitting him when he closes the door; the room tends not to carry either of their scents, so mentally it feels colder in here than elsewhere in the apartment; even with the heater on after showering.

Jihoon is at the kitchen sink washing his bowl when Soonyoung comes back to the central room. Soonyoung goes over to him and places his folded pyjamas shirt on Jihoon's head.

"The fuck ?" Jihoon says softly, at the light touch; he pulls the warm shirt off his head and glares at it, "I'm not your laundry basket."

Soonyoung watches him with a grin, noticing he hadn't dropped the shirt yet, even though he's acting annoyed at it.

"Stop acting so aloof just 'cause your heat's nearly over. You already took my blanket," Soonyoung snickers at the thing, Jihoon must've taken it without even noticing.

Jihoon flexes his shoulders and the blanket slips off him, "I was just cold," Jihoon says, but Soonyoung was entirely unconvinced.

Soonyoung picks the blanket up and puts it on the counter beside them, knowing Jihoon will want it again as soon as he's gone, "Will I come back at lunch ?"

"No thanks," Jihoon says earnestly, having put aside the harsh attitude for now, "I think I'll be able to go to my studio in the afternoon."

So that's why he's in a good mood, and up so early... "Shit, that's great ! You'll have way more time to finish your project with an extra day, huh ?" Soonyoung says, ruffling through his bag to make sure he has everything he needs.

Jihoon hums at him, shirt still in hand, and he makes no move to put it down or anything. Soonyoung would tease him about it after his earlier protest, but he doesn't want the younger to feel self conscious about anything.

He was really looking forward to coming back during his break, but now there's no need to do so. He tries to reign his scent in a bit, he knows already there's a tinge of disappointment in it, he doesn't want that to remain in the apartment all day.

He's relieved that Jihoon's scent is still so strong, he probably can't sense much of Soonyoung's mood right now.

"I better run, have a good day !" Soonyoung says with a kind smile, zipping up his jacket at the door.

"You too ! Thanks again for..." Jihoon can't look at him while expressing his gratitude, but he gestures around the room vaguely to show his point, the shirt sweeps through the air.

"'S'no problem Jihoon," Soonyoung says with a small laugh, before waving and heading out the door.

His legs twitch at the parting, and he stumbles for a few steps down the corridor, a tension settling in his stomach. Going to an adjoining room during Jihoon's heat has a noticeable effect, but actually leaving the apartment is worse. There's no unbearable pain, or anything as disruptive as the initial shocks, but all day, an anxiety looms in his gut. He's never asked Jihoon how it makes him feel, but it must be something similar.

~

His day is standard, a little underwhelming from not having a reason to see Jihoon, but he's proud of his own hard work and what some of the other members show that they've been working on.

He's eating lunch in the company cafeteria when someone pats his shoulder and sits beside him.

"Oh, hi Seungcheol. What's up ?"

Seungcheol smiles wryly and takes a slice of meat from one of Soonyoung's bowls to eat.

"Are you free Saturday ? Cause now you've got pla~ans !" He sings enthusiastically, and laughs when Soonyoung coughs while chewing some rice.

Seungcheol pushes Soonyoung's water bottle closer to him and hits his back lightly in case he actually swallowed something wrong.

"So Jihoon's threat was serious ? Ugh, why're you telling me so soon !"

"Be grateful, it's not even a serious thing, it's kinda like a speed dating event. And I've got your whole schedule cleared tomorrow."

Soonyoung quirks an eyebrow at the information; it did sound more fun than a normal blind date, "Wait... It's tomorrow night !"

Seungcheol laughs at his surprise, "Isn't it better to get it out of the way ?"

Soonyoung groans but doesn't argue with him. "Well on an unrelated note... Make that rat, Jihoon, go too !"

"Really ? To the same event ?"

"Well I don't really care where he goes, but it would definitely be funny to watch him if I can't find anyone interesting there."

Seungcheol huffs a laugh and shakes his head at Soonyoung's scheme.

"Sure thing, you both need a break from working so hard. I'm not telling him though, he would kill me. So good luck with that, " Seungcheol laughs, sliding away on the bench.

"Don't worry about that; thanks for taking care of us, Cheol !" Soonyoung nods at him in thanks, and he nods back before standing and heading back to his work.

Soonyoung giggles quietly to himself, his shoulders bouncing at the thought of telling Jihoon later. He still has half a day of work to get through first, so he puts the idea aside in the meantime.

~

Later, as he pushes the apartment door open, he notices Jihoon's scent is still fragrant in the air. Soonyoung can tell he's here right now, and his heat must have a few hours left before the effects properly subside.

"Hello ?" He calls out.

He puts down all of his stuff on the counter by door. He saw the kitchen was empty as soon as he opened the door, and looks into the sitting area to see it's dark and empty too.

His room's door is wide open so he walks a bit beyond the entrance to peer in.

Jihoon is lying across the foot of his bed, still in pyjamas from this morning, his hair ruffled. The bed is made neatly and all of the nest clothes, pillows and blankets have been put away. Just Soonyoung's blanket from last night is still out, covering Jihoon's back, and his toes dangling off the edge of the bed.

He has headphones on, but it's not the sight of Soonyoung that alerts him but his scent. He freezes from typing something on his laptop, and lifts his head a bit to taste the air.

His head whips in Soonyoung's direction and his eyes catch sight of him.

"Fuck," he says under his breath, and pulls the headphones down, "Why're you back early ? I was just in here to-"

Soonyoung walks in and floods the room with his gentle scent, and it effectively shuts Jihoon up as he's surrounded by it.

"Stop being so shy, you know I don't mind if you're ever in here."

Jihoon still pouts at being seen here with his heat nearly over, so he covers his head with the blanket and continues typing.

Soonyoung opens his mouth indignantly, and walks over to crouch beside the bed. Jihoon can't see him, and he moves in his socks silently, so he only knows he's right beside him by the more prominent scent.

"I'm working," he says shortly, and Soonyoung sees on his screen that he's in the middle of something complicated.

"You've been working all day," he says quietly so as not to interrupt too much. He can almost hear Jihoon's heart beat form here after being surprised like that. "Let's eat and watch something together."

"Soonyoung you're so needy," he says with a smile, still typing on the laptop and clicking around the screen adjusting stuff in the music file. "Are you going into rut or something ?"

Soonyoung snorts at his bluntness. He knows Soonyoung gets shy when that's mentioned, so he's definitely trying to get him to go away. "You wish. 'Cause then I'd have to stop bothering you !"

Jihoon lets out a small breeze of phermones then and Soonyoung pinches his nose shut when he notices it, "Stop trying to affect my cycle, you rat," he says in an altered voice, making Jihoon chuckle.

"Listen, go get everything ready and I'll be done by then-"

Soonyoung's scent whirls in the room, like a gust of morning air with the pine needles and charred wood, and Jihoon smiles at how easy he is to read, he's ecstatic that Jihoon has agreed.

Soonyoung doesn't have to say anything before jogging out of the room, so Jihoon starts wrapping up his work, saving his files and jotting down some notes about where to pick up again tomorrow.

Soonyoung gets everything organized in the sitting room, making everything comfortable and bringing armfuls of snacks and drinks to the coffee table. He pulls out a few cushions from a storage foot rest and puts them on the sides of the couch; even though Jihoon had cleaned away the nest on the bed he'd still be able to relax more like this. It was another thing Soonyoung did without being asked, he's not even sure Jihoon notices, but he can relax better knowing Jihoon's comfortable. 

He changes into a sleeveless top and fluffy pants before he heats their dinners and puts the dishes on the kitchen island, with two stools side by side. He sits on the right side one, and has to move his foot from the cross beam so it will stop jumping. They haven't been able to hang out in ages, he's so grateful Jihoon said yes; and he's glad Jihoon has a reason to take a break. He had a tendency to dive back into working too diligently after his heats, thinking that he's lost out on time working, which Soonyoung doesn't agree with, but he accepts his view on things.

Soonyoung smells the flavoursome food on the island beneath him, but he can expertly filter that out and notice Jihoon's presence. If he focuses, he should be able to know when he's on his way before he rounds the corner of the door. It's like a game to him, testing the accuracy of his instincts, and he shouts out a, "Yay !" right before Jihoon comes into view.

"Stop spying on me," Jihoon hides his amusement behind a tiny scowl, but the soft texture of his scent, which Soonyoung is now totally zoned in on, can't conceal what he's really feeling.

"Get over here to eat, Jihoon ! I'm gonna drool on your food if you don't hurry !" Soonyoung sits with his hands under his legs so he won't start eating first.

"Do whatever you want," Jihoon laughs, and finally reaches his stool which he boosts himself up onto with the crossbar.

"Let's eat well !" They say together, with Soonyoung flying through the words before reaching for his chopsticks so fast that one rolls off the island into the floor between their chairs, "Oh my god !" He slaps his face in annoyance, and by the time he's lowered his hand again he hears the tap running.

When he looks behind him Jihoon is towelling the metal chopstick dry, and holds it out to Soonyoung as he goes to climb back onto his stool.

Soonyoung is squinting at Jihoon, who takes his first bite and hums at the food, being able to appreciate the flavours a bit more now that the heat is subsiding.

"How'd you move so fast ?" Soonyoung asks, taking his first bite too and breathes it down in delight, after daydreaming about eating for the past hour.

Jihoon puffs a laugh through his nose and shakes his head and shoulders at the question, "It was literally the least I could do after you helped with everything these past few days, it's no problem."

Soonyoung hums with contentment, and they chat lazily about their days and what else they've got coming up in the next few weeks since they last spoke.

Surprisingly Jihoon finishes eating first, having discovered a voracious appetite after his first few bites, and in contrast, Soonyoung started savouring each piece of his meal more, letting the flavours settle on his tongue before swallowing.

By Soonyoung's last scoop of rice, it's Jihoon who's grown impatient.

"Soonyou-ung. This isn't your last meal, let's go already," he jumps from the stool and tugs at the back of Soonyoung's shirt as he passes. 

Soonyoung washes the food down with the last mouthful of his water before piling everything into the sink to deal with later. He could follow the trail of Jihoon's energetic scent with his eyes closed, and he finds him on the couch with a pillow in his arms and the blanket from earlier wrapped around his legs.

Soonyoung gets the remote from the TV stand and comes back to sit down. As he's navigating the menus, his mind wanders and he realises he forgot to tell Jihoon something.

"Oh hey, guess what !"

"What ?."

"No, really guess !"

Jihoon sighs in annoyance, wondering what Soonyoung could possibly want to say... "Oh right. You wanna thank me for getting you a date ?"

"Well yeah, of course," Soonyoung says with a pointed eye roll, "But also, you should be thanking me."

"For ?"

"Getting you a date too ! Surprise," Soonyoung says, giggling when Jihoon's mouth falls open.

"I hope it's not one with you again," Jihoon lets his head fall back on the couch. "The last time I went with you on a friend 'date' when your real date cancelled, you made me pay half the bill ! I wouldn't have ordered so much food knowing that !"

Soonyoung snorts at the memory, "Shut up that was your favourite 'date' so far," he smirks when Jihoon doesn't deny it, "And calm down anyway, it's not with me, it's just at the same place I'm going to."

"What ?"

"It's a speed dating event."

"Great, I can be your wingman. People might actually be interested in you if I do most of the talking," they both laugh at that, knowing how hopeless Soonyoung is at talking to new people.

"Jihoon as much as I appreciate the offer, you would literally be the worst wingman ! People would definitely think we were already dating, even our friends have said it a few times !"

"Well good luck with it all, Mr. 'Kwon-young'."

Soonyoung bangs a pillow off the top of Jihoon's head, "Shut up ! That's so embarrassing !"

"I know," Jihoon laughs, pushing his own pillow against Soonyoung trying to topple him over, "If you can't even introduce your own name I don't think you've got any hope."

Soonyoung's scent was dampened then, mostly showing annoyance, but Jihoon relented when he sensed the growing anxiety, the bark scent turning smoky.

"Hey. Don't worry. That happened like a year ago, you're a lot more ready now," Jihoon tries his best to reassure him, feeling a little guilty for bringing it up, "Why don't we make a game out of it ? Whoever gets the most phone numbers, wins ?"

Soonyoung's scent mellows out then and he has a small smile at the idea, "Sure thing. What does the winner get ?"

"Hmm... Whatever they want I guess," Jihoon says, trailing off as the opening theme of their anime concludes and they settle down to watch it.

~

The back of the couch was reclined a bit, and Soonyoung's head was resting against his arms behind his head, not wanting to take any of the cushions around Jihoon, since there was only a handful there. He should get a few more for the apartment.

They've got some of the snacks between them: chewy fruit drops, bite sized mini chocolate bars, crinkle cut crisps; and they keep pulling the bags closer to themselves absentmindedly, to where to other can't easily reach.

Soonyoung has half of the bags pulled close to him, and Jihoon has to look away from the screen to search for what he wants.

"Oh my god," he says, before pushing everything closer to Soonyoung and scootching closer, so there's only the length of the TV remote between them. "Stop hogging everything Soonyoung !" He says, eating a lemon and lime fruit drop at once, hoping it would taste like 7up.

"I bought them all !" Soonyoung laughs tiredly, his big dinner making him sleepy. He scans the packets in the space between them and decides he wants a chocolate.

"Yeah, for me ! I'm weak after my heat, idiot," Jihoon says playfully, and pretends to struggle to lift the bag of crisps, "See I need these more than you do !"

"Poor Jihoon, I'll feed you-"

"Don't even try it," Jihoon turns away, annoyed, and stuffs some crisps in his mouth. He rests his face on the cushion in his arms, ignoring Soonyoung.

"Aww," Soonyoung sighs, disappointed their joking is over already. 

Jihoon feels Soonyoung's happy scent from a second ago plummet around them, mirroring his falling spirits.

Jihoon wants to reach out to stop the scent from falling, but he stops short knowing he would look a little crazy waving his arms in the air like that.

He clicks his tongue and shuffles through a packet to pick out a sweet.

Soonyoung hums in surprise when something touches his lips; the coarse texture of the fruit drop barely noticeable, since Jihoon's warm fingers were grazing his lips too. His wrist was so close that the concentration of his scent was amplified; Soonyoung subconsciously licks his lips and Jihoon takes the opportunity to push the sweet into his mouth.

"Oh," Soonyoung says with a laugh only now understanding what Jihoon had been trying to do. Jihoon's looking straight at him, and lets his hand fall on Soonyoung's shoulder when Soonyoung smiles at him with his eyes closed. His scent is noticeably sweet which surprises Jihoon; it's probably from what he's eaten tonight. It's comforting, the pine and some familiar softer scent mixed with it; it's almost like the subtle dash of a rose.

"You're so strange, Soonyoung," Jihoon says in a quiet voice. His scent is thick in the air too, the tail end of his heat soothing him to sleep, like a weighted blanket covering him from head to toe. He lies back against the couch, and his head rocks to the side to rest against Soonyoung's arm, his hand slipping and catching at Soonyoung's elbow.

"I'm gonna take that as a compliment," Soonyoung says, relaxing his shoulder so Jihoon can lie more comfortably. He can just about see Jihoon's eyes fluttering closed, and he bites back a smile when Jihoon tries to fight to stay awake, his lashes fluttering and shining in the low light from the tv.

"Night Jihoon," he whispers, letting his scent surround them too, and the blend in the air makes his mind hazy.

Jihoon manages a grunt, in reply, and Soonyoung would've laughed if he wasn't so sleepy.

The last thing he remembers before drifting off, is tumbling over onto the soft wall of cushions; and Jihoon falls after him, the omega settling in the small space between Soonyoung and the back of the couch. An arm wraps around Soonyoung's middle, and the warmth behind the touch overwhelms him with comfort. He can't recall ever falling asleep with a smile on his lips before, but that night he does; it was radiant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...Any guesses as to how Jihoon will react in the morning, seeing how they ended up... Stay tuned for that !
> 
> And thanks for the warm reception to the first chapter, I hope you'll enjoy where I take the story from here :)
> 
> I'd love to hear if any of my writing in particular resonates with you, or made you react in some way ~


	3. Spark

Soonyoung wakes with a man in his arms, pressed against his chest, and it's nice. He hasn't hooked up with anyone in months, it feels good to be doused in someone else's scent. He breathes in deeply, and it turns into a satisfying yawn; the scent in the air settles on his tongue, and he discerns the flavours.

Pine needles and roses.

Charcoal and chocolate.

Soonyoung and Jihoon.

Oh god.

Soonyoung's eyes shutter open, and he tries not to dye the air with his shock, since it would definitely wake the omega. He can't extricate himself from the position though, with one arm trapped under Jihoon, and the other looped over his side.

He takes a few minutes to calm his wickedly beating heart, although that was mostly in fear of Jihoon's reaction when he wakes up. Soonyoung doesn't mind this, but when he thinks back to what happened the first and only other time they fell asleep like this, Jihoon totally overreacted.

Soonyoung wants to do something to minimise the situation for when Jihoon wakes, but he can't think straight right now; feeling like he's floating in a buoyant sea of roses, mind adrift.

So he pulls back a bit and watches Jihoon's face, amused by the lack of a serious expression that usually makes a permanent appearance when he's awake; he enjoys the scent on his skin, and the air laced with Jihoon's drowsiness and it quickly drags him back to his dreams.

He drifts in and out of sleeping, his alpha more present than usual, watching over the omega.

He wakes again properly, when there's a sudden heaving inhale, the scent around them comes to a standstill and Jihoon's eyes are wide, staring into his.

The only movement for almost a minute is just their eyes blinking and hearts beating, Soonyoung staying calm, searching Jihoon's expression and scent for his thoughts, and when Jihoon closes his eyes Soonyoung knows he's hoping to wake up from a dream. The blanket over them shifts and Jihoon's hands appear, and suddenly he's pinching himself hard enough to draw blood if he was let continue.

"Jihoon, stop," Soonyoung says, voice groggy but noticeably alarmed, and he yanks his hands apart. Jihoon shakes off his grip immediately.

"Fuck. It's not a dream..."

"N-"

"What the fuck happened ?"

"We fell asleep. Your heat phermones knocked me out."

"Shit."

Jihoon sits up and Soonyoung can only see his back; his shirt riding up a bit as he pulls it to his nose to smell.

"Friends can cuddle, it's not that big of a deal," Soonyoung says, ready to sleep for the rest of the day after the exertion of speaking to his agitated friend for only a moment.

"I don't cuddle, Soonyoung. Not with anyone, ever," Jihoon says with conviction, even though his omega is still clearly mesmerised by the mixed scent around them.

Soonyoung decides not to comment on how pleasant it was to be his cuddle buddy, despite Jihoon's alleged distaste for it; knowing he'd be shoved off the couch, so he wouldnt see Jihoon go red.

"You should be more opened minded," Soonyoung says more neutrally, turning away from Jihoon, pulling the blanket up to his chin. He can't decide if he feels tense or not, or if he's just mirroring Jihoon's feelings; the sensation of his scent blended together with someone else's is overwhelming.

"Shut it," Jihoon says, unable to mar the words with any hostility due to the influence of the scent. Soonyoung could get used to this pacific version of Jihoon.

Soonyoung turns to him, holding back a grin, and motions that he's zipped his lips closed. He holds out his hand with the invisible key to Jihoon, but he scoffs and slowly pushes the hand back to Soonyoung's chest. Soonyoung catches the soft glint in his eye, and he's not fooled by the hard line of Jihoon's mouth.

"Fucking hell though," Jihoon sighs then, wrestling the blanket to free his legs and leaps over Soonyoung to the floor; kicking a stray cushion into the kitchen by accident; having fallen when Soonyoung turned over in his sleep. "We were so close it's as if we scented each other for hours. This could take days to fade !"

"Sometimes you have a little of my scent on you; what's the big deal ?" Soonyoung stretches out on the couch; after sharing the narrow space for hours, it's a luxury. He watches Jihoon pacing around but only ever taking a few steps from the couch, as if he were compelled to stay in range of the scent cloud.

Soonyoung realises he can't use his scent to calm the younger man down like he usually would, it would be completely drowned out. He rolls to sit and sees Jihoon start massaging his eyes lightly.

"You okay ? Did you not sleep enough ?"

"You know I slept great, that's not the problem," he says, and mutters to himself, "Stop fishing for my approval."

Soonyoung smiles, still intent on figuring out Jihoon's problem exactly. He scratches his jaw, and only just notices how energised he feels now that he's finally fully awake. Was the feeling in his chest happiness ? Whatever it was, he had no time to enjoy it; Jihoon was still on edge.

"So. What's wrong, Ji? Why're you so bothered by it."

"People will think something happened between us, Soonyoung."

"Jihoon, relax. It's not the first time this has happened-"

"Shut up. That doesn't count, it was the first day of a heat. No one else witnessed it, so I like to imagine it didn't happen."

Soonyoung smiles at his friend, "Listen, I'll explain to everyone what happened, if they even notice."

"Soonyoung !" Jihoon groans impatiently, "Have you forgot what's happening tonight ?"

A sharp blast of dread-laden scent shoots through the room, penetrating even the pervasive mix of their scents; Jihoon snorts in disbelief at how he has only now remembered the event.

They stare at each other for about ten seconds, the scent of decayed roses already pushed from the air; Soonyoung's lip twitches up and he starts snickering. Jihoon laughs too, with a more shaken look in his eye.

"Ugh, don't blame me, Jihoon, your scent drugged me to sleep."

"I do blame you ! I wouldn't have made that scent if you hadn't made the couch so comfortable !"

"That's not something you can complain about !" Soonyoung laughs.

"Well what else can I say ! You've done nothing else wrong," Jihoon mumbles, and Soonyoung smiles at the backhanded kindness.

"What kind of excuse should we use if people ask ?"

"I don't know..."

"Can't we get Seungcheol to cancel our spots ?"

"If we did that, we'd have to work today. I'm not in the mood to have people sniffing at me, and finding out that I've been so close to you."

Soonyoung laughs at his horrified look, and stands, pulling Jihoon by his srm so they can eat breakfast.

"You say that like you hate being close to me ! I guess I'll move ou-"

Jihoon tugs him closer, so they're face to face, and Jihoon eyes are narrowed, a scent of smoky wood sharp with disapproval lashing at Soonyoung.

"You know I'm joking. I know I'm your favourite roommate ever," Soonyoung beams, and Jihoon pushes him away in feigned disgust.

"If you ever say that out loud again, I'll kick you out," Jihoon says, having turned away so Soonyoung can't see his reaction to the accurate title Soonyoung's given himself.

Soonyoung laughs at his empty threat, and goes to make coffee. Jihoon follows to sit on his stool a moment later.

"God, your scent is so overpowering," Jihoon notes, and Soonyoung turns with an eyebrow lowered in question.

"Hmm ?"

"I smell like you ! Haven't you noticed ?"

Soonyoung steps closer to Jihoon and dips his head towards the side of his neck, not noticing how Jihoon shivers, while so intent on identifying the scent. "I can still smell your scent clearly though..."

"Idiot. That's coming from you right now !"

Soonyoung pulls back and snuffles at his own wrist, finding that Jihoon was right. It was just as fragrant as the chocolate and rosewater that usually comes from Jihoon, his own scent only noticeable underneath the sweetness because he knows it should be there.

"Wow, that's so cool," Soonyoung mumbles, turning his wrist back and forth, and zoning in on the differing combinations of chocolate and rose scent that pour out.

Jihoon tuts at Soonyoung's easygoing attitude. He'd rather have taken that from the alpha than his scent, to deal with this today.

Soonyoung swats the air between them, hearing Jihoon's tut, "Don't complain so much. My scent smells good on you."

Soonyoung has no idea what the scent that he smells next, means; the complexity of the emotion on display created by the fusion of simpler ones, that Soonyoung can't puzzle together in his mind... And it's all expressed with mostly his own scent, which he's never needed to decipher before.

Surprise.

Embarrassment.

Contentment.

Skepticism.

Anger.

Not in sequence, but completely muddled together, as if Jihoon wasn't sure either what he felt, or had no control over it.

All of those words his mind supplies he takes with a grain of salt; not able to say anything with any certainty, except that Jihoon had a striking reaction to his words.

And then he smells nothing except Jihoon, but it's not really him. Jihoon pulls back his current scent so Soonyoung can't taste it anymore, and he's left with just Jihoon's demeanour to figure out his reaction. He's sitting a little stiffly, and his face is mostly unreadable; Soonyoung had missed whatever flashed across it while stunned by the scent.

"Too bad I can't say the same for you..." Jihoon taunts, making light of what Soonyoung said as if he were completely indifferent to it.

Soonyoung moves on from trying to understand what happened there in the three beats of silence between when they spoke; Jihoon is acting normal again, so he decided he doesn't need to worry anymore.

"Wanna go out for breakfast ?" Soonyoung asks, just putting their coffees on the counter now, stirring sugar in Jihoon's.

"No thanks, I think I'll-"

"Jihoonie," Soonyoung pleads, and Jihoon's refusal dies on his lips. Soonyoung has a hunch he was planning on working again on his laptop if left alone, but he needs to recharge after just finishing a heat.

They finish the coffees first, and go to their rooms to change; Soonyoung finds he's ready first, so puts away the cushions on the couch so Jihoon won't be annoyed seeing them when they get back.

Jihoon comes out of his room looking fresh, but his eyes are still blinking closed from the comfort of the scent on him. He interprets the feeling as needing even more caffeine, so they agree on a café just five minutes away.

~

"We should probably spend time apart before the night," Soonyoung says, walking beside him as they return home after the light breakfast.

Jihoon smiles at the accommodating suggestion, "Soonyoung, do you not remember last time ?"

"There wasn't a last time."

"Good answer, but seriously. Even four days later it was still noticeable. A few hours won't help at all."

Soonyoung laughs at Jihoon's resignation.

"Anyway, we may as well enjoy our day off; Who fucking knows when we'll have one of those again."

"Mhmm," Soonyoung agrees, already thinking of what they could do for the next few hours before they needed to get ready for the speed dating thing. He doesn't really mind what they end up doing. Days he gets to spend with Jihoon are always the best.

~

Jihoon's rooting in his wardrobe, the sun setting outside already, their day having passed in the blink of an eye; they'd gone around the city together, did grocery shopping and played some games.

"Shouldn't you ask one of our fashionable friends to help you pick something decent ?" Soonyoung asks, lying on Jihoon's bed amidst some of his clothes. He wonders if this is how comfortable Jihoon feels in his room during heat, with stuff nested around him and a complimentary scent so defined throughout the room.

"Oh, like that Soonyoung guy ?" Jihoon deadpans, and Soonyoung kicks his leg up into the air in annoyance.

"Obviously not, I'm trash at fashion. Minghao would obviously be our best bet."

"Soonyoung, I seriously don't wanna see any of our friends today. They've already got some weird idea about us, since we spend our cycles together. How could I explain just being finished with my heat and smelling like you, this fucking strongly."

"Mm," Soonyoung thinks, "I know Minghao wouldn't really care, but if anyone else found out, our group chat would-"

He makes a "pp-owwh" noise in his throat and uncurls his hands, pulling then away from himself, and his face shows alarm; a great demonstration of an implosion coming from the phone on his chest.

Jihoon smiles at him in the mirror, and shakes his head.

Soonyoung brings his arms down, and catches a whiff of his scent, which despite Jihoon's remark isn't nearly as intense as this morning.

Compared to earlier where they smelled like they'd literally swapped scents, Soonyoung now only carried a whiff of Jihoon's sweetness on his skin. Hardly indicative of anything more than being in the same room as someone for a while. His alpha is hyper focused on scents right now, the mix earlier being so captivating.

Jihoon finally pulls out a shirt he's interested in wearing and pulls it on, not buttoning it up yet. He looks in his mirror and shrugs, and catches Soonyoung's eye in the mirror to get a thumbs up of approval.

"You're so helpful," Jihoon says sarcastically.

"I know," Soonyoung says, accepting the praise anyway.

He finds a matching pants and makes Soonyoung go to his own room before taking off his jeans and pulling it in.

When he trails after Soonyoung to his room, he's already wearing nice pants and clean sneakers, undecided on a top, his t-shirt from earlier on the floor. Jihoon isn't fazed by the view, looking carefully at the alpha to imagine what he could wear tonight.

He walks out of the room, and Soonyoung's scent follows him out the door in question, "Just a sec'," he parts the hangers in his wardrobe in the middle, and pulls at the sleeves of the shirts, to see them.

Aha. This one.

It'll be perfect.

When he returns to Soonyoung he's put on a plain grey shirt, but Jihoon doesn't think it fits his personality, which he should show off if he's gonna meet new people tonight. Soonyoung meets his eye to get his opinion.

"No. How'd you feel about this ?" Jihoon holds up a two-toned shirt, frost white on the torso and cuffs, with a print of navy roses on the front and matching sleeves and collar.

"Wow, I've never seen you with this on... Will it fit me ?"

"Hopefully," Jihoon says, though he knows it will, prone to buying things a size too large, "Try it on."

The shirt pulls his whole look together, especially since it compliments his styled navy hair, which was in the process of dulling from a brighter blue to his natural black.

"Huh," Soonyoung remarks, twisting from side to side to see himself at different angles. "If I get any numbers tonight, they'll all be thanks to you."

"Damn right," Jihoon taunts, reaching out to smooth a wrinkle down at the back.

Soonyoung wipes down his front, and turns to smile at him, in thanks.

"I better go drown myself in cologne so people won't notice your scent," Jihoon snarks, and while Soonyoung enjoyed his mellowness earlier, nothing could ever beat the real Jihoon for him. Nobody makes him laugh so much.

They're in the bathroom rifling through a cupboard where they keep way too much stuff they hardly use. Jihoon finds a cologne that compliments his own sweet scent, making it a little tamer, and more masculine.

"I better put some on to cover my scent a bit. People say it's weird sometimes; That the outdoors-iness doesn't suit me..." Soonyoung trails off, focusing on lining his eyes and putting on a little navy eyeshadow.

"Who said that ?" Jihoon asks indignantly, his head whips to face him and Soonyoung notices his hands clench tightly on his cologne bottle. Soonyoung could cry from how protective Jihoon is, it's his own way of showing he cares and Soonyoung really appreciates it.

"Calm down Ji, no one that matters." Jihoon doesn't budge. "If anyone says it again I'll tell you straight away."

Jihoon narrows his eyes at Soonyoung, as if to say, "You'd better," and he turns away quick enough that Soonyoung doesn't need to hide his toothy grin at Jihoon's ways. A second later he hears a muted, "I'll kick their ass," and he bursts out with a laugh.

Soonyoung finishes his own makeup and holds the eyeliner pen close to Jihoon, who smiles, leaning closer to him while he applies it.

"Wow, you look hot," Soonyoung whistles when he's done, and Jihoon elbows him away, embarassed, and musses his hair to get it how he wants.

"I'd say the same for you but then you'd get too cocky and scare everyone away."

"It's not cockiness, it's confidence !" Soonyoung declares, washing his hands and reaching for his own cologne bottle, but he's stopped; his wrist suddenly gripped by Jihoon.

His scent gland pulses quickly under the heavy touch, and he hopes Jihoon doesn't notice.

"Don't. Your real scent is better," Jihoon says, pulling Soonyoung's arm back and closing the cabinet, before leaving the room.

Soonyoung watches him go, and only snaps out of looking at the empty doorway when he catches sight of himself in the mirror.

He looks really good, especially with the sincere smile that won't go away, bringing a shimmer to his eyes.

He takes a minute to appreciate his scent, filling the empty room with it; there's pine, burning wood-

His eyes drop to the shirt he's wearing.

-and still a little Jihoon...

The large printed roses seeming to flutter, in the gust of his contented scent.

He doesn't notice the tiny spark in his heart; only the resulting bloom of a warm and fuzzy feeling in his chest; a subtle feeling that will persist through the rest of the night.

Soonyoung mistakes it for a slight excitement for the event.

But, his alpha - more shrewd than his conscious mind - knows what the cause of the spark is instantly.

Soonyoung leaves the bathroom, and relaxes for a moment seeing Jihoon again, his scent heavy in the air, still slightly mixed with Soonyoung's since this morning.

Soonyoung's alpha is content with this for now, but is eager to try for the omega's affection; tired of being limited to dreams to appreciate their scents together, and only being close enough to hold by accident.

Tired of feeling so close to an omega, but unable to interact with it at all; feeling it's presence but never knowing if it shares the attraction; denied the privilege because of two mental barriers to such a thing.

Soonyoung's alpha yearns for a chance to connect with Jihoon's omega, and in that way, the most fundamental and true parts of Soonyoung yearns for Jihoon.

In his mind though, Soonyoung is oblivious to all of this; he leaves the apartment with Jihoon, chatting and feeling calm, hoping they'll both find someone else tonight to make them happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so it begins...
> 
> I love getting comments~ Especially ones about your reactions to stuff. I don't get the fun of any big shocks or swoons since I'm writing it bit by bit, but I like to live vicariously, haha.
> 
> Hoping the alpha things makes sense in the context of what's happened so far, lemme know how you feel about it~
> 
> Thanks for reading this far, I'll be back with more soon(hoon) :)


	4. Speed Dating

After leaving their apartment together, they arrive at the small bar where the event is being held. Soonyoung tugs on the points of his shirt collar to make sure it's neat, and Jihoon holds the door open for him to walk in.

There's no corridor or connecting room - The door opens straight into the event. A woman waits just beside the doorway to welcome them.

"Hi. Come on in, out of the cold, what're your names ?"

Soonyoung gives Jihoon a subtle side eye, since he knows he's ready to jump in and screech laughing if he messes this first introduction up.

"Kwon Soonyoung. And he's Lee Jihoon."

"Great you could make it, here's a scorecard for each of you, and a number badge. It'll start in just a few minutes. Have fun !"

They both thank her and trail further into the room; big enough to hold a decent crowd of people; with tables pulled around in a circle formation and paper arrows on the ground to show which way to move.

Soonyoung looks around; The floor is a black slate and the lighting is warm and low hanging despite the high ceiling. The tables and chairs dominate the space, but there's a little space left on the other side for the bar, stools and beside it on the corner - two couches and a TV playing muted, some sports match showing. It's a cozy setting, and Soonyoung feels relieved that his initial nerves are starting to wear off now that they're here.

"Looks like I'm starting here, and moving around," Jihoon hums, and they stand by his table, Jihoon reading through the categories on the scorecard.

Even with the handful of new scents in the room, Soonyoung notices Jihoon's scent thrum in the air, like a laugh. He looks down to see what caused it, and he's writing.

"Whatcha doing ?"

"Filling in your name, 'number 10'."

Soonyoung double checks his number badge to see that Jihoon was right.

He finds his table, a few over, with the '10' card and pulls Jihoon over for a second while he sits down and turns his phone off.

They hype each other up in the next few minutes, until the room is nearly full, and Jihoon flicks a wave before going to his seat. His scent lingers for a while, comforting, and it gives Soonyoung the confidence to take on the event.

A woman with platinum blonde hair and a dyed streak of black, tucked behind an ear, sits opposite him, a '5' clipped to her blue shirt and they whisper hi to each other as the host speaks from the centre of the room briefly.

They're given a short welcome and the logistics of the night, before the low music from earlier is turned up a little to give the pairs a little more privacy.

"Nice to meet you !" Soonyoung says then, with a friendly smile, holding out his hand.

"You too ! My name is Eujin."

"Soonyoung."

They shake hands and he notices her scent from her wrist, but it's faint and hard to describe under the fresh perfume.

He wonders what people will think of his scent tonight. He rarely went out in the past without a cologne - He trusts Jihoon's judgement about it though.

He glances over at his roommate a few times during the conversation; not in a rude or disinterested way, hoping it just looks like he's thinking; despite the handful of people between them, and having to lean on his chair a bit to see, his gaze keeps trailing towards the man.

Jihoon notices him every single time, without even looking over properly to see him, and he gives a tiny wave under the table every time, making Soonyoung bite back a smile.

He feels himself relax a lot from the acknowledgements, and Eujin's pleasant company.

"Is this your first time at a thing like this ?" she asks.

"Yep, a friend organised it."

"Oh, that guy over there ?"

"No, no," was it that obvious where his gaze had been wandering ? "He's just my roommate, Jihoon."

"Oh, it's fun to do stuff like this with friends."

"Definitely ! We've even made a game out of it !"

Eujin laughs out loud and asks about it.

"That sounds hilarious, but also, like a great reason to take it seriously."

Soonyoung nods. A small chime sounds to mark the half way point of the 'date' and he realises he hasn't asked much about her, so they do a rapid fire 'random facts' thing, and these usually make him feel nervous and judged, but Eujin's facts are equally as bizarre and fun as his; by the end they're shaking with chuckles and try to outdo each other with the randomness and hilarity.

The chime sounds again, to a different tune, and they joke, while writing stuff down on the scorecards, that they're only saying good things about each other.

When Eujin stands to go, they both pause for a second looking at each other before giggling again, "Wanna talk some more when this is all over ?"

"Sure thing," Eujin says, "Let me know who wins that competition !"

Soonyoung smiles, and in the few seconds before a new person sits with him, he writes about the things she told him.  
_________

Number:5  
Name:Ahn Eujin  
Romance:8/10  
Friendship:9/10  
More information:omega, 🐶 person but has a hamster, studied art in Japan and works in a small gallery near here, lemon & daffodil scent, also from Namyangju !! cool :D @ahn_eujin_art

_________

He smiles thinking back on the brief conversation, hoping the rest will be as colourful...

The next few people pass by without anything catching Soonyoung's attention. He barely writes anything about them on his sheet.

He takes the time during the occasional awkward pause and cyclical seat swapping, to write about Jihoon; his scent bubbles happily as he does, warm wood and cool pine needles, as he thinks hard about what to write about him.

They get four minutes for each conversation, and at one point Soonyoung is too distracted by Jihoon being at the next table, to carry a conversation; the girl in front of him now, realises and catches up on marking her scorecard.

'And as for number 10...

More information: He seems to have his eyes on a good match already, shame ㅠㅠ'

The chime sounds and Jihoon is the first one moved, plopping casually in the warm seat opposite Soonyoung. He's got a neutral smile, and he spins his scorecard on the table.

"Nice to meetcha," Soonyoung says holding out his hand, knowing it's a stupid joke, but something compels him to seek the touch. His scent flows around his hand invitingly, and he's already smiling imagining Jihoon's reaction.

Jihoon slaps it away, playfully, so people won't think he's crazy hitting a stranger, and he reaches forward to get Soonyoung's scorecard.

He scim-reads the rows.

"Soonyoung, you can't score everyone so highly ! How will you chose between them-"

"Well-"

"-You dumbass !" Jihoon whispers, and Soonyoung snorts, knowing what he's spotted. Jihoon starts scribbling things out, but Soonyoung pulls the paper back before he can completely erase it all.

"Hey !" Soonyoung giggles, and he likes the unamused look on Jihoon's face. He doesn't waste a single second trying to puzzle out his expression; throwing his scent forward, to search Jihoon's - And he finds out that the omega definitely enjoyed reading about himself.

The scent paints a visceral picture - A red rose dancing happily, in the warmth of a Soonyoung-made sunbeam.

Soonyoung smiles in satisfaction at his reaction, and revises his scorecard with a smile.

He holds the paper up for Jihoon to see.

"Look, it's even better now !"

_________

Number: 3  
Name: Jihoonie ~~eww~~  
Romance: ~~10/10~~ 0/10 X (¹⁰/¹⁰) ㅋㅋㅋ  
Friendship: ~~10/10~~ ∞ ✓✓✓  
More information: Ω, rosewater+chocolate ~~yum,~~ but he smells like me a lot too, @woozi_universefactory genius song writer !!! but also a great dancer ⭐ younger than me. Who did his makeup ? ~~He looks hot !~~ He does though !

_________

When Jihoon finishes reading the updated assessment, he rolls his head back with an, "Ugh!" and Soonyoung wolf whistles at him, to punctuate the hotness comment.

Jihoon scowls at him like he wants to leap across the table to hit his arm, but Soonyoung's glad to be getting such focused attention from the man, after being so bored by the other people here for ages; even if it means he gets a smack... Maybe especially in that case. And his alpha agrees, any touch being a chance to connect with his omega better.

Jihoon rolls his eyes, scent pleased and rosy meeting Soonyoung's, and he asks how his night is going, and if he has any plans for after, now that it's nearly over.

They decide to get a few drinks after going to the trouble of dressing up, and Soonyoung mentions Eujin.

"Wow first date already ! Soonyoung's not wasting any time !"

Soonyoung lifts his foot forward to step on Jihoon's toe, but Jihoon's catches his calf between his legs and crosses his ankles. Soonyoung settles into the hold; his usually competitive alpha too placated by the touch to want to move at all.

When Jihoon realises he's not struggling, he almost does the splits on his chair by moving his legs away so quickly; Soonyoung snorts at him.

"So, what about you ? Will I need to leave the apartment tonight ? Or play loud music ?" Soonyoung asks, bringing his hands up to cover his ears, and smirks.

Jihoon sits forward in his chair in disgust, and glares at him.

"You can if you want to; you won't be missed if you're gone," but his scent tells Soonyoung otherwise, going a little bland at his own suggestion.

"No way ! But, if you need me to..."

"I won't ! Stop talking about me getting laid !"

Soonyoung throws his head between his arms on the table and his shoulders bounce with laughter at how loud Jihoon had said that.

Of course he makes sure to scent cool, calm pine towards Jihoon, hoping he won't be ruffled by his unplanned admission to the room.

"I never said anything about that !" Soonyoung lies, "But anyway, any alpha here catch your eye ?" He asks, knowing Jihoon's preferences; Jihoon looks away at that, and Soonyoung's alpha feels disappointed, like he's being overlooked.

"There hasn't been any yet... There was one beta I liked, but not really, you know," Soonyoung looks over at his scorecard to see the highest 'Romance' score of a 3, hardly a promising score; but his alpha is still disheartened that it's higher than his own score of 'No/10'.

"Hmm, fingers crossed there'll be some guy you'll like before the end. It'd be a shame if my bed was the only-"

Jihoon actually jumps forward this time to cover his mouth, and he feels Soonyoung's cheeks pull up into a smile.

"I don't wanna know where you're going with that, and neither does anyone else in this room, thanks !" He hisses with wide eyes, and a little redness on his cheeks.

Soonyoung's little laugh is almost totally muted by the gentle hand and the background music, but it would've been impossible for Jihoon to miss the way his charcoal scent crisped in amusement against his wrist.

Jihoon lets go and huffs, "You're making me realise how shit the other people here have been at flirting ! You make it seem so natural."

Soonyoung doesn't laugh at that, just watches Jihoon for a moment, his alpha tuning in to see if there's any trace of omega or fondness in Jihoon's gaze after the comment; there's not, but he enjoys the eye contact and compliment anyway.

"I'm not sorry for giving you such high standards," Soonyoung smiles, and feels proud for influencing Jihoon in a positive way. "I've made you more choosy, and that can only be a good thing."

'So choose me', his alpha would say suavely, and if Jihoon's omega could've been listening, he bets that would've delighted him enough to say, 'I will.'

"Yeah. Too bad no one's caught my eye, since we became close..."

Soonyoung smiles kindly at him, in condolence, but he feels his heart warming.

The lone spark in his chest lighting a fragile thread of kindling, and those embers stay stagnant for now, controlled, glowing, and act like a beacon for his alpha - He's desparate to dig a little deeper into Jihoon's words just there.

Is there an implication there about their relationship; one that should give him a reason to hope; or is he imagining things ? 

"...I'm gonna need a lot of luck tonight to find someone," Jihoon looks up at him, and the way his eyebrows draw together make his insecurity apparent.

Soonyoung reaches to pat his forearm, and it clears Jihoon's eyes, showing his usual strength again. Not covering up the insecurity, but the small reassurance from Soonyoung being enough to silence the negative thoughts.

"Pfft, you'll be fine, have you seen yourself in a mirror ? And you're fun to talk to..."

Jihoon tuts, and pulls out of Soonyoung's reach.

But his scent catches the compliment and holds it close. Tucking it away in a flower grove, like so many other of Soonyoung's words, he draws strength from when he needs reassurance.

The chime sounds abruptly, and they both sit up a bit.

"The fuck ? That was the fastest four minutes of my life !" Soonyoung says.

"Same. Don't miss me too much," Jihoon says, getting up and they fist bump for luck; another man sits down in front of him.

Soonyoung's eyes are on him, and he thinks he's involved in the conversation, but really he's thinking about Jihoon, he lets his gentle pine scent follow to the neighbouring table. Soonyoung beams out of the blue, when he tastes the familiar chocolate scent return to his space.

Soonyoung let's his pine needles bristle against Jihoon's smooth chocolate, like a faraway tickle, and it makes Jihoon shift in his seat. He retaliates, rose petals dancing in his scent and flapping at the charcoal, making Soonyoung laugh out loud, and he apologizes to the man in front of him for not paying attention.

The apology is as empty as their conversation. Soonyoung still enjoying the closeness to his roommate, and when he moves away, he's a little woeful. He tries to dive back in the next conversation, when he notices Jihoon is actually enjoying his own at the moment, and isn't paying him any attention.

The group rotates twice more, and he meets one other person he's interested in... Slightly.  
_________

Number:11  
Name: Park Hyunwoo  
Romance:5/10  
Friendship:6/10  
More information: Beta, office worker, likes to travel, paint+menthol scent, ...

_________

His scores get a little less generous by the end, though he asks the second last guy, Hyunwoo if he wants to have a drink with his group after.

The chime has a little celebratory jingle to conclude the event, and Soonyoung's so eager he almost crashes into to Jihoon's side when he runs over, and they go to the bar together. After all that he doesn't want to be apart for another second for the rest of the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the support for this story so far :)
> 
> TL;DR Creating things takes time, and I like comments <3
> 
> I actually spent a few hours writing and editing this (and the following chapter) and it's so weird for me to spend so long on something I'm making. Even though I like writing and I like my writing, the long process is tough, but always feels worth getting through.  
> I'm also/moreso a visual artist - Drawing, and spending even an hour on a piece makes me die inside, if that makes sense, haha ? Like in my mind I already know what I'll see, and while writing I already know what events I'll read, so doing more work than a 10 minute sketch or a very loose draft of a chapter is difficult to commit to. It must be a patience thing, hopefully every time I confront it and finally finish a marathon creation I'll get over the feeling a bit.  
> But there's one thing makes writing more rewarding than drawing, and that's sharing it with you readers who really care about what I'm writing, and who leave whatever comments you feel like :) So a deep thanks to anyone reading, and if you continue reading, I hope there'll be something in the story that will leave some kind of impact.
> 
> Spiel over. Would you like to hear more from me besides the story from time to time ?
> 
> Look forward to the next chapter soon, since it's already written :)


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